The Westport Maritime Museum will open its newest exhibit this Saturday, Aug. 16, in conjunction with the Westport Art Festival and in celebration of the City of Westport’s Centennial.
The exhibit features the lumber schooner King Cyrus, highlighting artifacts from the Chris Yuckert collection. Yuckert’s maternal grandmother, Grace Rosendal, was raised and schooled aboard the schooner that was captained by her father, George Rosendal, in the early 1900s.
Ship’s history
The King Cyrus was a four-masted 717-ton schooner built by Hall Bros. at Port Blakely in 1890 for James Tuft of San Francisco.
In about 1910, she was acquired by Joseph Knowland, and was later sold to the Gardiner Mill Company.
The King Cyrus plied the Pacific Coast and across the ocean to the Hawaiian Islands and the Orient, transporting lumber in the early 1900s.
The schooner went aground off Point Chehalis and was a total loss on July 17, 1922, while inbound from Honolulu.
Exhibit items
Exhibit items include Grace’s personal diary written in 1913, photos, a number of books, a ship’s clock and more.
A large wooden nameplate for the King Cyrus that was mounted on the ship’s side was retrieved from the wreckage and eventually made its way into the Westport Maritime Museum collection, where it has been on display for the past several years.
Hours and admission fees
The Westport Maritime Museum is open Thursday through Monday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Admission fees: Adults $5, Teens - $3, Youth - $2 with children under five admitted free.